All US Troops Should Leave Afghanistan Now!

It is time for the US to end that senseless war in Afghanistan. The President's decision to withdraw 33,000 troop definitely is a step in the right direction. However, it does not go far enough. The Washington Post reports that:

"In a prime-time address from the White House, Obama said he will bring home 10,000 U.S. troops by the end of the year and 23,000 more by next summer, a withdrawal window that will conclude two months before voters decide whether to give him a second term. The first troops will leave Afghanistan next month.

The pullout schedule he outlined Wednesday will leave 68,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan by the end of next summer, and Obama said their departure will continue steadily through 2014, when the Afghan army is scheduled to take over security."

After the 9/11 terror attacks, President Bush, with Congressional authorization, declared war on Al Qaeda and those who harbored them, the Taliban in Afghanistan. At that time, the war was a righteous cause. It was a war to protect our national security.

Here we are 10 years later. If America's goal was to defeat Al Qaeda and to remove the Taliban from power, that goal has been accomplished. Al Qaeda has been defeated in Afghanistan. Less than 100 Al Qaeda fighters remain in Afghanistan. Osama bin Laden is dead.  By the way, the terrorist leader was found in Pakistan, not Afghanistan. The Taliban has been removed from power. Since the mission has been accomplished, there is no need for US troops to remain in Afghanistan.

Our goal should not be rebuild a failed state. That is virtually impossible. After almost 10 years of intervention, the US has not been able to transform Afghanistan into a sustainable and democratic nation. I doubt that an additional three years will make any difference. 

As President Obama said during his address last night, our focus should be on nation building here at home. We should not be building schools in Afghanistan as we close schools in Detroit and New York. We should not create jobs in Afghanistan while the African American unemployment rate remains in the double digits, twice the national average.

In these tough economic times, it makes no sense for the US to continue to squander billions of dollars in Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya. Before even discussing cutting Medicaid, Medicare, education and other vital services, this nation must stop funding those three wars.

Not one more US soldier should be injured or killed to prop up a failed, balkanized, narco-state. The Afghans must determine their own destiny. All US troops should leave Afghanistan now!

This article is cross posted on Jack and Jill Politics.